


Can't Help Falling In Love

by Girl_with_the_tiger_eyes



Category: Marvel, Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Arranged Wedding, Betrothed, F/M, love hate, princess Y/N
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-11-24
Updated: 2015-11-24
Packaged: 2018-05-03 06:01:50
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,153
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5279483
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Girl_with_the_tiger_eyes/pseuds/Girl_with_the_tiger_eyes
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Queen Frigga hates to see her son Loki, locked away in a prison for the rest of his days so begs her husband to release him.<br/>At first a little cautious, Odin eventually agrees on one condition.<br/>Loki Must marry.<br/>This is where Princess Y/N comes in.<br/>Heir to the throne of her own world, Y/N must find a husband before she can take her throne.<br/>Only problem is, Y/N has no desire to marry, especially not the arrogant Prince she meets in the prison of Asgard, but alas, neither of them have any choice.<br/>Y/N hates her betrothed but during her time in Asgard, she finds that there is more to her Prince than he lets show, and she finds her stone cold heart warming up to him.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Can't Help Falling In Love

**Author's Note:**

> Yet another request from tumblr. Part two has been requested and will be added when I get around to writing it... I hope you enjoy!

"My love, I cannot bear to see him spending his days in that dreadful prison. I know you do not want to see him this way either. Our son was never one to be caged. You know that," Queen Frigga started one evening, clasping her husbands hand on top of the dinner table.

Thor and Jane were seated at the far end of the table, visiting from Earth, and they shared a look when Loki was mentioned.

Odin sighed and ran a rough hand down his face, closing his one eye for a moment before speaking.

"What would you have me do? The boy knew what he was doing..."

Frigga frowned at her husband.

"He was making a point..."

Thor snorted and Odin threw his head back laughing.

"My dear, you speak as though he merely had a tantrum..."

Frigga cut in, repeating herself.

"He was making a point to you..."

"He tried to destroy one world and enslave another!"

Frigga just gave her husband a look and he stopped smiling, sighing deeply once again.

"What would you have me do? He is too much of a threat to be set free. If he grew bored, he'd entertain himself by starting a war! He is too dangerous, Frigga!" Odin snapped, his hand thudding down on the table. A short silence followed, broken only when Jane cleared her throat and offered her input, looking a lot like a deer caught in headlights when everyone turned to her.

"Um, well, maybe Loki isn't the actual danger? What if that actual danger is that he wants to prove himself to you and the rest of Asgard?" 

No one said anything, so she hurried to explain.

"Think of it like this: Loki plus Asgard equals the need to be worthy and powerful which usually equals trouble. So if we take away one factor, aka Asgard, Loki no longer has anything to prove, therefore he is more likely to behave... At least, as much as he is capable of..."

Odin's frown deepened in thought, but Frigga smiled at Jane and then her husband.

"Jane is right! If we send Loki far away, to a peaceful world, even he would be unable to make trouble. It would be like imprisonment, but he would have a chance for a normal life..."

Odin appeared to be coming around to the idea and was nodding slightly, looking thoughtful.

"You're right," he said eventually, holding up a hand before anyone could speak. "However, I have one condition... There seems to be one thing that tames the men in this family, and I am confident will work for Loki too... He needs a wife!"

Thor shook his head as he addressed his father.

"Loki would not agree to that. My brother isn't..."

"Your brother will not have a choice if he wishes to see the outside of that cell again!" Odin boomed, making Jane flinch, but Frigga placed a hand on Odin's arm and smiled.

"It will be done, my love. Loki will be married."

Odin nodded, a smile coming to his face despite himself.

"Yes... But who would be able to tame Loki?"

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"Princess Y/N! Please, come back! Your father wasn't finished!"

You ignored Sasha, your handmaid, as you continued running through the grassy fields that surrounded your family palace grounds. You were heading for your safe place. A spot by the stream, where the hollowed out trunk of a tree made for a comfortable seat, and a peaceful reading spot.

You'd been retreating there for years, ever since your older sister had refused to be named the heir and you'd been forced to learn all the things you'd need to know for when you were queen. It was the only place that nothing was expected from you, so you went there when you needed to be alone to think.

That moment definitely qualified.

"Selling me off to the highest bidder? What am I, cattle?" You demanded as you kicked a stone on your march towards the trees, glaring into the darkened woods.

"Don'y you think that's a little melodramatic?" Asked a voice from behind you, and you whirled around to find your older sister, Arya, standing behind you.

Instead of answering her, you stood still and glared at her.

Anyone else in the kingdom would have shrank away from that look, but Arya just rolled her eyes and took a step closer to you.

"Oh don't look at me like that, Y/N! It's not my fault! And besides, father isn't selling you off to the highest bidder... There wasn't an auction. The marriage was arranged. Father knew you wouldn't be happy about it..."

You cut in, clenching your fists.

"And still he went through with it! Why didn't he come and talk to me himself? Why did he send you?" You demanded.

Arya gave you a worn look.

"Would you have listened?" She countered, and you crossed your arms and looked away, hearing your sister sigh again before putting a gentle hand on your shoulder.

"Y/N, don't upset father, not now... He's lost so much. We all have. Let's not lose eachother too..." She tried, but you pulled away.

"I shouldn't upset him?! I'm upset! I don't want to be married! Especially to someone I don't know!"

Arya's eyes hardened and she raised her voice slightly.

"This isn't just about you! It's about what's best for all of us! Father may not have many years left, and you cannot take the throne until you are married!" She snapped and you frowned, knowing that what she said was true. That didn't mean you had to like it though.

Arya must have seen the fight leave you as she wrapped you in a tight hug.

"I know it's scary, Y/N, but you're so lucky! Odin asked for you to marry Loki personally. You will be royalty both here and in Asgard. It's an honour, and you would do well to remember that. You're lucky father agreed..." 

You rolled your eyes but said nothing as you followed your sister back to the palace.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

A week later and you were standing on the rainbow bridge, staring up at the city that was home to your betrothed.

"Asgard," you breathed, in awe of the beautiful city which would be your home for the next month.

With that thought, your smile dropped and you took the hand offered to you by a guard who pulled you onto his horse, and when your father and sisters were ready, you all headed into the city.

The royal family were waiting for you, minus your betrothed, the infamous Loki.

Without waiting for a hand, you jumped off your horse and curtseyed low, remaining in that position until one of them spoke.

"Rise child."

You did as instructed, and Odin continued speaking, so you looked over him once.

"Welcome back to Asgard..." He started, but you interrupted him without speaking, ignoring the looks you were receiving from your family.

"Back?" You asked. "I've never been here before," you explained.

This time it was Frigga who spoke to you, a small smile on her lips.

"You have actually, but I'm not surprised you don't remember, you were very young at the time... Your mother brought you to visit in the spring. Can you remember yet?"

You started to shake your head, but then Arya kicked you, telling you to just agree.

You ignored her and addressed the queen.

"I am sorry, my queen, but it was such a long time ago and I don't remember very much about my mother," you lied.

It was true that you didn't remember the trip to Asgard, but you could remember your mother. Just not anything happy.

Frigga gave you a sad smile and offered you her arm.

"No matter. I'll take you to your chambers, and then we can all meet for a meal."

Taking her arm, you nodded and allowed yourself to be guided through the magnificent palace, guards stood at frequent points along each corridor.

When Frigga caught you looking at them, she smiled and gave your hand a reassuring squeeze.

"Don't mind them. They're just here to protect and offer directions when we get lost," she smiled and you nodded politely back to her.

Even though you were a princess and heir to a throne, you had never seen so many guards before, but that was probably because you lived in a peaceful world, one that hadn't seen war in thousands of years, and was unlikely to ever again, so you didn't need many guards.

When you reached your chambers, you thought Frigga would leave you to settle in, but she followed you inside and gave the room a quick check over before finally turning back to you, a wide grin on her face as she looked you up and down.

Inwardly you were groaning.

You'd taken off your heavy travelling cloak and discarded it on your bed, leaving you in your usual tunic, leggings and boots, which Frigga smiled at.

This was clearly a protective mother sizing you up, seeing if you were worthy of her son.

Even if you didn't want to marry the prince, you would not allow yourself to be deemed unworthy, so you stood up tall and met her gaze.

Instead of disappointment on Frigga's face, you saw that she was smiling at you, and she started to speak to you as she circled.

"You're very beautiful, Y/N. But I'm glad to see there is more to you than that..." she touched your arm and smiled again, "You're strong too, like a warrior... Can you fight, Y/N?" She asked and you half debated lying to her, but then nodded anyway.

" I had the weapons master and captain of the guard train me from a young age."

Frigga nodded, considering her next question before she voiced it.

"But why? A princess shouldn't need fighting skills, surely? That's why you have guards."

You frowned, not agreeing with that statement.

"Is it not better to have and not need, than need and not have? And besides, no one is going to fight harder for my life than I am, and I would not expect anyone to try. My life is worth no more than anyone elses."

Frigga's smile widened and she nodded in approval.

"I agree. You're smart too, Y/N, and I admire that. You were given a life which could have made you lazy and selfish, but you are none of these things. I think Loki is very lucky, and you will make an excellent wife, and an even better queen."

That was a high compliment coming from the queen, so you thanked her deeply.

Then it was time for dinner with your families.

On the walk to the dining room, you asked your soon to be mother-in-law if Loki would be joining you for the meal, but a shadow flickered across her face and she answered quietly.

"No. Loki has not been permitted to leave his cell, and I'm afraid that that's where you'll be meeting him. Odin thinks it would be too dangerous for you to meet him anywhere else."

You nodded again. You'd been made aware of Loki's position, and exactly what he did to get there. Your father had also explained why you would be the one to marry Loki.

Odin had requested you after remembering how your father had described you to be a proud and stubborn girl, who he doubted would ever be married, because you couldn't be tamed, and nor did you want to be. Much the same as Loki, so the two kings had arranged the marriage as a way to ally the two kingdoms-even thought the two kings had been friends for years-, and also in the hope that somehow you and Loki would cancel each other out, and therefore tame the both of you.

You hadn't liked how the word "tamed" was thrown about. It was not in your nature to be tamed, and nor should it be. You would one day be queen, and queens were forces of nature, and as such could not be tamed.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

After the meal, it was time.

Guards would escort you to the prison and you would meet your betrothed.

He knew you were coming, and you had decided that you wanted to be alone with him, instead of under the watchful eyes of both families.

The steps down to the prison were steep, but you didn't fall and so when you got to the bottom, you looked around.

All the cells were clear, their occupants being held in by force fields, so you could see how the creatures and men inside watched you as you walked by, sneering and shouting after you. You ignored them all and walked on, your head held high and your eyes alight with challenge.

The cell on the end was where he waited, sitting on a chair with his feet up while he read a book.

He didn't look up, not even when the guard told him that he had a guest and then left the two of you alone.

You took the opportunity to look over your future husband.

His black hair reached his shoulders, which were covered by clothes in black and green. He had been a warrior before and his clothes were made for protection and agility. His clothes were well made, and sign enough that he came from royalty.

He wasn't as broadly build as his adoptive brother, but he was just as tall, and there was the way he held himself that just screamed he was just as dangerous as Thor, maybe even more so; that was all obvious even when he was just reading.

Loki finished his page and then looked up at you, a smirk on his face as he stood up and moved closer to the force field that kept him confined.

He eyes took you in, the smirk never leaving his face, only widening when you met his gaze and then held it.

"It seems the guards were right. You are a pretty one, aren't you?"

Narrowing your eyes at him, you decided you would answer him.

"You need not waste your breath on complimenting me, Loki. We are going to be married, no matter how much we protest, so we might as well make it as less painful as we can," you stated, already knowing that Loki got on your nerves, and he'd only said twelve words to you.

Still the smirk didn't leave his face and he paced in front of you, his eyes not leaving you once.

"You've got me all wrong, Y/N. I have no problem marrying you, I just don't wish to be married at all, something I can see that you relate to?"

You nodded at his question, wondering where he was going with it, but he just sat down again and picked up his book, looking up at you.

"Can you read?" He asked and you scowled at him.

"Of course I can!"

Loki just shrugged and so began a pattern. He would ask you insulting questions, which you would answer and then come back at him with something equally as offensive for him to answer.

The questions knew no bounds, and they were meant to hurt and embarrass in the hope of provoking a response, but both of you stayed composed on the surface. At least until Loki asked a question about your mother and you froze, numerous memories assaulting your brain at the same time. Clammy skin... The smell of blood on her breath...

STOP! You thought, shutting the memories down, but it was too late and you could already feel the lump in your throat, so without even a goodbye, you turned and walked away, cursing yourself for showing weakness.

Loki's smirk faded to a sad smile as he watched you walk away, believing that he had saved you from him.

He knew that if you kicked up enough of a fuss about marrying him, Odin would call off the wedding, and now that you detested Loki, he knew it would be any time now and he would get the news....

So needless to say, it came as a surprise to him when he woke up a week later to the sound of your footsteps.

It was very late and as no guards were with you, Loki had guessed that you had managed to sneak out.

He sat up in his bed, not smiling this time.

Your family had returned to your home a few days before, and you had grown rather bored, so you had sneaked out of your room in the middle of the night and sought out the only person in the palace whom you desired to speak with again.

You didn't explain all that to Loki though, and instead you sat down outside of his cell and watched him.

"To what do I owe the pleasure?" He asked, still not smiling at you, even though he was a little happy to have some company, even if it was you who he was trying to save from himself.

Being nasty hadn't worked, so Loki settled for scaring you off. But first he would see what you wanted.

"In less than a month, you and I will be married, so you should accept now that I usually don't have much reason for anything, and even when I do, I am unlikely to justify it to anyone."

Loki nodded and waited for you to say something else, expecting you to leave when you got to your feet, but instead you moved closer to the force field that kept you apart, your hand hovering mere inches away from it.

Looking up, you started to ask him a question as he got to his feet and paced again.

This time though, he only wore bottoms, and you almost allowed yourself to be distracted by his body, but there was something about the way he watched you as he paced. Something predatory, and you felt like the only thing that stopped him from attacking was the field between you both.

You forgot your question and your heart quickened it's pace, but then you remembered what mind tricks Loki was capable of and you glared at him again.

"I'm not afraid of you!" You snapped.

Before you had time to blink, Loki had moved, slamming his hand into the barrier, inches away from your face.

His voice lowered as he leaned in closer, ignoring the pain the barrier was causing him as he whispered three words to you.

"You should be."

You hadn't moved, even though every cell in your body was ready for fight or flight.

Crossing your arms, you smiled at your betrothed.

"Are you done?"

Loki moved back, his muscles relaxing again now that he was no longer touching the barrier, and stared at you for another few seconds before sighing and turning around so his muscled back was exposed to you.

He walked over to the chair he had been sitting on when you first met and picked it up, carrying it so it was close to you and then he pulled on a short before sitting down and facing you.

Then you began to talk, and this time you spoke of books you had both read, places you had been and past experiences.

Loki had seen more places that you, but he didn't act like your experiences were somehow less than his own, and he listened intently.

He was actually quite capable of being charming when the mood took him, and you wondered what you had done that changed things between you.

Loki knew though. You were too stubborn to be scared away, so even if none of you had wanted to be married in the first place, it was going to happen. So if you could manage to get along, maybe the whole experience wouldn't be as painful as originally anticipated.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

For the next two weeks, you spent most of your day with Loki, telling him about your home world, even bringing him things that you had brought with you, such as a plant that only grew there, and a selection of treats Sasha had packed for you.

In return, Loki would draw you a picture of one of the places he had been, or sometimes he would even sing to you.

You hated to admit it, but you'd been wrong about Loki, and the two of you had grown close over your stay.

Only mentally though. Physically, you had yet to even brush his hand with your own.

He wasn't allowed out of his cell, and you weren't allowed inside.

The first time you would be able to touch him was at your wedding.

That frusterated you more than anything. The floor outside of his cell was cold and lonely, as was his cell, but you knew that that wouldn't be the case if you could so much as hold his hand.

It was late one night when you found yourself outside of Loki's cell, still in your short nightgown, and your hair wide and unruly in a bedhead.

Loki smiled when he looked up and saw you, not having expected to see you until the morning as you had said goodnight hours before.

"Your hair looks beautif... Y/N, what's wrong?!"

He was on his feet in an instant, as close to you as he could get without getting zapped by the walls of his cell.

You didn't answer him at first, instead sitting down in your usual spot, close to the cell wall.

Loki squatted down on the other side, looking at you with concern in his eyes, but also protective anger, worried that someone had hurt you. If that was the case, Loki was going to find them and...

"It was just a nightmare," you muttered, looking at your hands.

Loki sagged in relief, moving to sit parallel to you on the other side.

"Do you want to talk about it?" He asked gently, and you shrugged before turning to look at him, his teal eyes sad but comforting to you, so you sighed and spoke.

"It's about my mother..." You started. Loki didn't interrupt, even though he remembered you mentioning that you didn't remember her.

When you weren't interrupted, you continued speaking.

"I know that I said I can't remember her. But that's not exactly true... I can remember; just none of the good things. All I can picture when I think of her is how she looked when she was dying. It took her slowly, or so I'm told. She died when I was nine, so I should remember more, but all I can remember is those last two weeks; when she was coughing up blood and too sick to move..." You paused to wipe your eyes and then spoke without looking to Loki. "I was the only one with her with her when she died. I couldn't do anything to help her while she choked to death, and that's the image that I get when people mention her..." The tears were coming faster now, so you stopped and wiped your eyes again and barked a laugh when you looked up at Loki.

"I'm sorry. This is stupid. I just had no one else to go to, and I just needed someone to talk to," you tried and saw how Loki reached out, stopping just short of your face, and then his eyes grew dark before he looked away.

"I'm sorry, Y/N. What I wouldn't give to be able to hold you now..."

You exhaled and leaned your head pack against the wall, turning your face so that you were looking at Loki, your hands almost touching on the ground between you.

"Right now, Loki. This is enough."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Thor and Frigga found you and Loki in the same position the next morning, both of you still asleep.

They'd known that you and Loki had been spending more time together, but this was the first time you had stayed in the prison all night.

After a quick word from Thor, a guard scooped you up into his arms and carried you back to your rooms.

Loki woke up as the guard was walking away, and he stood to watch you being carried away.

Frigga shared a look with her two sons before smiling and sharing a knowing look with Thor.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

When you woke up, you were back in your bed with no recollection of how you got there, or any desire to move any time soon.

The sun was high in the sky, so you knew you had been asleep for a while, but that didn't make it any easier to get out of bed when a maid was sent to get you up, to inform you that you had been summoned to the gardens.

Groaning, you got out of your bed and slipped on a light purple dress with golden clasps, and then hurried down to the gardens, barefoot.

When you reached the doors to the gardens you saw someone standing with their back to you.

Shoulder length black hair, dark clothes and tall. You knew who it was before he turned around, but you couldn't quite believe it was him.

Walking down the steps, you saw the many guards who were standing around the gardens, far enough away to give you some privacy, but close enough to intervene, should he try anything.

He was talking to Thor, but when Thor caught sight of you, he cleared his throat and then excused himself, leaving the two of you mostly alone.

He still had his back to you, and you could see how tense his shoulders were. He was just as nervous as you.

He took a deep breath and then turned around.

So it was actually happening. Loki was somehow out of his cell, standing before you now with a nervous grin on his face.

Without a word, you ran forward, stopping less than an arms reach away, just staring at Loki, still not quite believing he was there.

With an amused smile, Loki reached for your hand, bowing to kiss it before straightening again, letting your hand go once more.

A wide smile broke out on your face and you jumped forward into Loki's arms.

You held on tightly, burying your face in his chest, breathing in his scent and enjoying the feel of his strong arms wrapping around you.

"How?" You asked and Loki stroked your hair as he answered.

"Odin allowed it. It's a probation period. As long as I can behave, I don't have to go back to the cell. My chambers are heavily guarded, but I am allowed to stay in them until we return to your home."

Hugging him tighter, you silently thanked his adoptive father and then pulled back, smiling wider than before.

Up close, Loki was even better looking, and he had his trademark smirk on his face, but that softened the longer you gazed at each other without speaking.

You didn't know what to say. When you had arrived in Asgard, you hadn't wanted to marry Loki, and couldn't stand him, but over the course of your stay you had become closer with him than anyone else in your life. He was your best friend, that much was obvious, but then last night you had felt something else between you changing again.

You and Loki had flirted a lot since becoming friends, but you knew that it was more than that now.

However it had happened, you realised that you were falling for him.

Suddenly you felt like you should say something, but worlds deserted you.

Luckily Loki spoke instead, looking a little nervous as he moved even closer to you.

"I have something for you..."

Smiling, you asked him what it was, and then he moved closer and put his hands on either side of your face.

Guards stepped closer, ready to pull Loki away, but you stopped them with a raised hand. Loki wouldn't hurt you.

"Close your eyes," Loki whispered, ignoring the guards, so you obeyed, your breath catching a little when you felt his lips on your forehead.

A warmth spread from where his lips touched your skin, and then you started seeing pictures behind your eyes.

At first you didn't understand what you were seeing, but then you gasped.

You could see you. Younger you, maybe six or seven years old, and you were standing next to a much younger Thor, fighting each other with toy swords.

A voice called your name and suddenly the image shifted to show a beautiful woman laughing as she moved towards you, picking you up in a tight hug before tickling you and making you squeal in delight.

You gasped, realising what you were watching. It was a memory. One of Loki's from when you had visited Asgard with your mother. He had remembered you and was now giving you the one thing you had been wanting for so long. A happy memory of your mother.

The memory was fading, and you became aware of Loki's fingers on your face and sounds of the gardens.

Your eyes opened, and you felt the first tear fall down your cheek as you looked up at Loki, his teal eyes watching you carefully.

"Thank you," you whispered, allowing Loki to wipe your tears with a thumb before you acted without thinking about how many people were watching the pair of you at that moment, stretching up onto your toes to place your lips to Loki's.

He paused for only a second before he kissed you back, his hands on your hips and yours in his hair.

You'd admit that you weren't completely sure if you were doing it right, but you didn't care. It felt good to you, and Loki wasn't complaining.

When you broke apart, you could feel the blush on your cheeks and you saw how bright Loki's eyes had gotten, so you took his hand and pulled him over to bench behind a beautiful willow tree that offered a little privacy for the two of you to talk.

Before you could chicken out, you decided to address his colourful past.

"Loki, I know that you wanted to be a king, and I know that my world isn't quite Asgard... But it can be a home for you now, and if it's enough for you, you will rule at my side..." You looked down, feeling Loki's gaze on your face, but you didn't look up again until he tilted your head up so your gaze met his.

"Y/N, future queen or not, you would always be enough for me."

He cut off any protest or questions by quickly leaning in again and kissing you deeply.


End file.
